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Jan232013

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Vice Chairman designate of the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee (JEC), today released the first edition of state-by-state economic snapshots for the 113th Congress. The reports detail each state’s economic progress, and this month’s report shows that one-half of the states and D.C. recorded private sector job gains in December while 168,000 private sector jobs were added nationally.

“While twenty-five states saw private sector job growth in December and manufacturing jobs increased in twenty-six states, much work remains to help businesses quicken the pace of hiring,” said Vice Chairman designate Casey. “As Congress works to find responsible, bipartisan solutions to reduce the deficit and meet our obligations as a nation, we cannot lose sight of the fact that job creation is essential to moving the economy forward.”

Report highlights include:

• Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia added private-sector jobs in December.

• Five states had statistically significant decreases in the unemployment rate during December. The national unemployment rate during the month was 7.8 percent, down from 8.5 percent a year earlier.

• Manufacturing employment expanded in 26 states in December. Overall, 180,000 manufacturing positions have been added across the country in the last 12 months.

The report uses recently released state-level data to explain how the economic recovery is unfolding in each state.